Planooraplf co



C. ESPING.

BEET PULLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION mw MAY 5.1911.

' Patented July 15, 1919.

5 SHEETSSHET l.

JnvenTor;

flttozme s C. ESPING.

BEET PULLING MACHINE.

Patented July 15, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2 THE goLUMmA PLANOORAPII cu., WASHINGTON, n. c.

Patented July 15, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3- Tm: COLUMBIA PLANOIIRAPH c0, WASHINGTON, D. c-

C. ESPING.

BEET PULLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5. I911.

1,309,617. Patented July 15,1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

Tm: COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPN c0., WASHINGTON. D. C

C. ESPING.

BEET PULLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION man MAY 5. 1911.

1,309, 6 i 7. Patented July 15, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CONRAD ESPING, OF MOLINE, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO MOLINE PLOW COMPANY, A

CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

BEET-PULLING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 1 5, 1919.

Application filed May 5, 1917. Serial No. 166,670.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CONRAD Esrnvo, a citizen of the United States, residing at Moline, in the county of Rock Island and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Beet-Pulling Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

This invention relates to beet pulling machines of the type embodying a wheeled frame equipped with beet pulling elements, which, in the travel of th machine, act beneath the surface of the soil, and engaging the beet roots, automatically lift the same as the machine advances.

My invention is directed to various improved features of construction and arrangement of the parts of a machine of this general type, having in View the accurate and effective control by the driver of the path of travel of the machine, so that the rows may be followed with accuracy; the adjustment of various parts of the machine to meet the varying conditions encountered in practice; and other objects and advantages which Wlll be fully pointed out in the specification to follow and the novel features of which will be set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a beet pulling machine having my invention embodied therein.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same with the parts of the machine in the position they occupy when the machine is 1n operatlon.

Fig. 3 is a similar view, looklng from the opposite side of the machine, and showing the parts adjusted in the position they occupy when the machine is to be turned short around at the ends of the rows.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional elevation taken on the line aa of Fig. 3 as viewed in the direction of the arrows on said line.

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional elevation taken on the line bb of Fig. 3 as viewed from the front of th machine.

Fig. 6 is a similar view on the line cc of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional elevation on the line cZ-d of Fig. 2, looking from the rear.

Referring to the drawings:

1 indicates the machine frame, in the present instance of horizontal rectangular open form and comprising fore and aft extending parallel side frame bars 2, a front frame bar 3 connecting the forward ends of the frame bars 2, and a rear frame bar l connecting the rear ends of the frame bars 2. At its rear the frame is supported by two ground wheels 5 rotatably mounted on horizontal journals 6 on the crank arms 6 of an arched axle, the arched portion 7 of which is mounted in bearings 8 on the rear end of the frame, so that the axle may be rocked in said bearings to raise and lower the wheels relatively to the frame. The rocking motion of the arched axle is effected in the present instance by means of a hand lever 9 extending at the side of the frame and mounted loosely on the arched portion of the axle, the lever being extended at its lower end in the form of an angular arm 10 shown more particularly in Fig. 4. This arm is bolted or otherwise fastened to a transverse yoke plate 11 firmly fastened at its center and opposite ends to the axle by means of clips 12 or other suitable fastening devices as shown in Fig. 1, so that the plate will be held in fixed relations to the axle. As a result of this construction, when the hand lever 9 is pushed forwardly from its rear-most position, in which position the crank arms of the axle will extend forwardly at an inclination, the axle will be rocked in a clockwise direction, thereby swinging the crank arms to an upright position as shown in Fig. 3, and lower' ing the wheels relatively to the frame and elevating the latter. The lever is provided with a locking latch 9 cooperating with a toothed segment frame 9" fixed to the machine frame, by which means the lever and consequently the wheels may be locked in their different positions of adjustment. At the side of the machine opposite the lever 9 the yoke plate has fixed to it the lower end of an arm 13 mounted loosely between its ends on the arched portion of the axle at that side, and havin connected with its upper end the rear cm of a spring 14 whose forward end is connected with the side bar 2 of the machine frame as shown mor clearly in Fig. 1. The lever 9 has connected with it above its point of pivotal connection with the arched axle, the rear end of a spiral spring 15 whose forward end is connected with the side bar 2 of the machine frame, the tendency of these two springs 14 and 15 being to rock the arched axle in a clockwise direction as shown in Fig. 2 and swing the crank arms rearwardly and thereby assist in the elevation of the rear end of the machine frame.

At its forward end the frame is supported by two caster or guide wheels 20 journaled on horizontal inwardly extending ends 21 of upwardly extending stems 22, which stems are mounted to both swivel and to move vertically in bearings 23- fixed to the forward end of the machine frame, the purpose of this construction being to enable the Wheels to be turnedso as to travel at different angles relatively to the line of draft in order to guide the machine, and to enable the wheels to be adjusted up and down relatively to the. frame order to raise and lower the forward end of the same.

The turning or swiveling of the wheel stems is controlled in the present instance by means of a horizontal transversely arranged foot lever 2% (see Fig. 1) disposed Within reach of thedrive'roccupying the seat A, and pivoted between its'ends on an upright axis as at 24: to a horizontal bar 25 extending across the machine frame and sustained by the side bars 2. This lever has pivoted to it respectively at opposite sides of its axis, two rods or links2'6 which exe tend forwardly nd are jointed at their forward ends to theouter end-s of horizontal arms28 whose inner ends are fixed respectively to the upper ends of the} wheel stems 22 so that When the foot lever is rocked 0n its'axis, thewheel stems will be correspondingly rocked and the caster wheels will be turned in angular relations to the. line of drafte'i'ther to the right or left according to the direction of movement of the foot lever. Provision is made fOr releasably locking the foot lever in a'tran'sverse medial position to hold the wheel'sstr'aightforward in the line of draft, which is effected in'thep'resent instance by means of an'ang'ula'r locking latch 29 pivoted on a horizontal transverse axis as at 30 'to'a rearwar'dextension or bracket 31 on the bar 25, and adajptedtobe engaged in a notch in'a plate 32 'fixedto and "extending rea'rwiardly from the foot lever, the form and relation of this latch being such that it may be conveniently operated by the fdriver'to disengage the notch and thus re-- lease the foot lever to enable the latter to be operated by the drivers feet. This latch is employed when the rows are straighter so "ridged as to render it unnecessary to guide the machine by the feet of the operator.

The vertical adjustments of the caster wheel stems 22'to raise and lower the front end of the machine frame, are effected in the-present instance by means of an upright hand lever 33 which is pivoted at its lower end to one of the side bars 2 of the frame and Which is provided wit-ha locking latch bar.

tends forwardly and has its forward end trolled by thefoot lever 9'4.

34 adapted to coeperate with notches 35 in asegment frame 36 fixed to thesaid side Jointed to this lever some distance above its lower end is a link 37 which exjointed to the lower limb or a crank arm 39 whose upper limb 40 is firmly fixed to a crank arm 41 fixed to one end of a horizontal transverse rock shaft 42 mounted in suitable bearings on the machine frame. At its opposite end the rock shaft is provided with a second crank arm 43,;and to the forward ends of these twocra-nk annsare jointed respectively the lower ends of vertical links 44 whose upper-ends are formed with forwardly extending journals 45 loosely mounted and confine-d in bearings 46 projecting outwardly from slotted collars 4'7 loosely surrounding the respective stems '22. These collars are held from inovementendwise on the stems by means of sleeves 48' which surround-the stem-s in the slots of the collars and which-are firmly fixed to the stemsiby means of setscrews-49. This con struction permits the stems to swivel with in the collars, while atthe same time when will be swung upwardly and the collars .47 I00 engaging the sleeves 48 will move the caster wheel stems 22 upwardly endwise in their bearings thereby raising thecaster wheels relatively tot'he frame and permitting the latter to be lowered at its front'as shown in Fig. 2 and when the lever is swung in the opposite direction, the reverse movement of the parts will take place and the front of the frame will be'eleva'tedias shown in Fig. 3. a

It Wlll be observed from the construction 1 -1 0 and arrangement of the parts for control hug the swiveling movements ofth-e wheel stems andfor adjusting the latter up and down, that the two adjustments are independentof each other and may be effected 1T5 without interference with each other. That is. to "say, the wheels may be swiveled by the foot leve'r without regard'to the particular position in which the wheels may be set by the hand lever 33, and the wheels may be 1520. adjusted in avert-ical position without 'regard to the positions of "the wheels con- The beet pulling elements 50, of which there are two asusual, are fixed tothe'l-ower 112 5 ends'of standards 51 which extend upwardly at a rearward inclination and convergebufwardly towardtheir upperends where they arerigidly fixed to the-side bars 2 of the framenear the "rear ends er the same. r50

The machine is equipped with a tongue sustained by the frame in the manner to be presently described, and the draft is applied to the frame by the clevis 61, and in the operation of the machine the front caster wheels and rear ground wheels are adjus ed by their appropriate adjusting mechanisms described, to the proper position relative to the frame so that when the wheels travel on the surface of the ground, the beet pulling elements will act below the surface at the proper depth, and more or less inclination may be given to the pulling elements according to the conditions encountered, by the proper relative adjustments of the front and rear wheels and the pulling elements being given the proper adjustment with regard to the space between them, according to the size of the beet roots.

In order that the machine may be guided by the driver to follow with accuracy deviations in the rows of beets, and in order that at the ends of the rows the beet pulling elements may be raised out of the ground and the machine turned on a short radius, I con nect the tongue near its rear end pivotally with the machine frame so that it may be moved relatively thereto about both a horizontal axis and a vertical axis, and 1 provide means for controlling the vertical movements of the tongue, of such form that when the rear end of the tongue is lifted vertically it will elevate the forward end of the frame and lift the guide wheels from the ground, and the tongue will be held rigid with the frame so that the machine may be swung around on the rear wheels and thus turned short, and when the parts are again lowered, the tongue will be released and will be free to move horizontally relatively to the frame. As a result of this construction and arrangement, when the parts are lowered and the beet pulling elements are in action, the machine frame may be guided by the guide wheels to the right or left, while the animals are traveling straight forward in the line of draft.

To effect these actions. the tongue is pivoted by means of a vertical pivot bolt 62 to a horizontal bar 63 having downwardly extending ends 64 which are pivoted respectively by horizontal pivot bolts 65 to the frame bars 2 near their front ends, this construction permitting the tongue to move up and down vertically about the horizontal axes of the bolts 65, and to swing horizontally about the vertical axis of the bolt 62. A plate 66 is fixed to the under side of the tongue at its rear end and extends rearwardly therefrom in the form of an extension 67 having journaled on its rear end on a fore and aft horizontal axis, a roller 68, which when the tongue is swung upwardly at its rear end will enter a socket 69 in a yoke frame 70 fixed to the side bars of the frame, the said roller when engaged in the socket preventing the lateral movement of the tongue about its vertical axis. A hand lever 71 is pivoted at its lower end as at 72 to a segment plate 73 and is provided with a locking latch 74- adaptcd to engage in a front notch 75 or in a rear notch 76 in the segment plate. This lever is provided at its lower end with a forwardly extending arm 77 which is connected with the tongue ex tension 67 by means of a chain 78 or other flexible connecting means. \Vhcn now the lever 71 is swung to the rear, it will, through the medium of the arm 77 and chain 78, draw the rear end of. the tongue upwardly and cause the roller 68 to enter the socket. in the yoke frame, by which action, and due to the connection of the forward end of the tongue with the neck yokes of the animals as usual, the frame will fulcrum on the axis of the ground wheels and the forward end of the frame will be lifted and the caster wheels will be raised above the ground as shown in Fig. At the same time, the tongue will be held by the engagement of the roller in the socket in the yoke frame, against lateral swing on the vertical pivot bolt 62. This is the position of the parts when the machine is to be turned at the ends of the rows, and with the rear wheels properly adjusted so that when the front of the machine is elevated as described, the beet pulling elements will be raised out of the ground, the draft animals being turned to the right or left as the case may be, the machine will be swung short around on the rear wheels. In starting the next row after the machine has been turned, the hand lever 71 is unlocked from its rear position and pushed forwardly, thereby releasing the rear end of the tongue, by which action the forward end of the machine will be allowed to settle until the caster wheels rest upon the ground, and the rear wheels being swung forwardly to lower the rear end of the frame, these combined actions will cause the beet pulling elements to enter the ground to the proper depth for action. As the frame of the machine is thus lowered, and the pulling elements enter the ground, the roller on the tongue extension moves downwardly from the socket in the yoke frame, thereby releasing the rear end of the tongue and permitting it to swing laterally on the vertical pivot. bolt 62. The driver may now accurately guide the machine to follow the deviations in the rows of plants, by operating the foot lever 24 to turn the front caster wheels to the right or left as the case may be, in which action the frame of the machine carrying the beet pulling elements will be deflected laterally relatively to the tongue, this relative deflection being permitted by reason of the pivotal connection of the tongue with the frame about a vertical axis. Therefore while the draft animals I may travel in. a general direction straight in the line of draft and without regard to deviations in the rows, the direction of travel of the beet pulling elements may be varied to the right "or left so :as to accurately follow the deviations.

Inorder that the rear wheels may be adjusted to and fromeach other to accommodate the machine for use in connection with rows of icllifferent widths, EI mount these adjusted positions. The collars are formed in their adjacent inner ends with annular recesses :83 and 84lin which the end-s of the hub rotate. By loosening the collars and shifting them outwardly or inwardly and fastening them in their new positions, the wheels may be correspondingly and inde pendently adjusted .on the journals, and-the distance between them thus varied as occasion demands.

In theforegoing descr-i-ptionand accompanying drawings I have set forth my invention in the particular form and embodiment as to the details -ofthe construction thereof whichin practice I prefer to adopt andrwhich has been found to answer to a satisfactory degree the *ends aimed at. It will be manifest that various, changes in the construction 'such as would suggent themselves to theskilled mechanic may bemade without 'departing from the limits of my -in-* Vention; and further it will be imderstood that-theinvention'is not limited to any particular form or construction of the parts cept in so far as such limitations Ear'evspecifled in the claims. I

The statement in the specification and claims that the tongue is movable transversely of the frame of the machine, is employ-ed in a relative sense to describe a rela tive movement betweenthe frame and tongue, as itis manifest that when the draft animals travelstraight forwardly and hold the tongue in the 'dire'ctionof their travel, the guiding of the frame of the machine to follow the deviations inthe row of plants, is effected by a movement of the frame transversely relatively to the tongue.

. Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In ian agricultural implement, the-combination of a frame equipped with an implement adapted to operate in the soil, guiding wheels sustaining the front ofthe frame,

ground wheels sustaining the rear of the same, .a tongue an'ovably connected with the frame and adapted to. be supported at its forward portion by tl1edra=ft;ani-mals, means for moving the tongue relatively *to the frame to one position ?to tilt the frame up wardly on the axis of the ground wheels, and means for holding the tongue rigidly with the frame when so onOVG'd, so that the latter may be swungtaround short on the ground wheels by-the draft animals-said holding means being formed torelea-se the tongue when the latter is moved to another position on the lowering of the frame; whereby the frame may more laterally rela-f tively to the tongue under the guiding action of the guidingwhee'ls. v V i I 2. In a beet pulling machine, the combination 'ofa frame,- beet pull-ingelementscarried thereby, swiveling guide wheels amounted on the-frame, means on ithe rframe for swiveling the guide wheels to guide thenia chine, and a draft pole mounted on the frame and movable laterally relatively thereto. 7 7 1 3. In a beet pulling machine, the comb-i nation of .a frame, beet pulling elements carried thereby, ground wheels sustaining the rear portion, of the frame, front swiveling Wheels sustaining the front portion of the frame, a foot lever; mechanism vn'io-unted on the frame .forssw-iveling the front wheels toqgnide'the machine, and 1a draftztongue mounted on the frame to swing laterally about (an upright axis,

4:. In a best pulling machine, the {combination of a frame, (beet pulling elements (car ried thereby, ground wheelssupporting the rear portion of the frame, swiveling front wheels sustaining the front portion ofthe same, Ineanson the frame for swiveling the 1 front wheels :to-gui'de (the machine, a draft pole :m'ounted on'the frame and anovable vertically at its rear enda'b'out ayhorizontal axis and movable also horizontally at its rear end about a vvertical axis, means- 011 the frame operatively'c'onnec'ted with the tongue for moving the same upwarc lly, and means trolling the swiveling, movements of the I wheels to guide the machine, a-draf-t tongue mounted on the frame and movable up and down at its rear end and movable ralSO'EhOIYl zontal ly at its rear o'endyand means serving when the tongue is smoved up at its rearend to hold the same against horizontal movement, said means adapted when the tongue is moved down at its rear end to release the same and permit it to swing horizontally.

6. In a beet pulling machine, the combination of a frame, beet pulling elements car ried thereby, ground wheels sustaining the frame, a draft tongue mounted on the frame and movable up and down at its rear end and movable also horizontally at its rear end, means on the frame for moving the rear end of the tongue upwardly, and means serving when the tongue is moved upwardly, to lock the same against horizontal movement.

7. In a beet pulling machine, the combination of a frame, beet pulling elements carried thereby, ground wheels sustaining the frame, a draft tongue mounted on the frame and movable relatively thereto at its rear end both up and down and also horizontally, a hand lever on the frame, and a flexible connection between the hand lever and the tongue for raising and lowering its rear end;

whereby the tongue will be free to move horizontally at its rear end when in lowered position.

8. In a beet pulling machine, the combination of a frame, beet pulling elements carried thereby, ground wheels sustaining the frame, a draft tongue mounted on the frame to move at its rear end both up and down and also horizontally, an extension on the rear end of the tongue, a socket in the frame adapted to receive said extension when the rear end of the tongue is moved upwardly and serving to hold the tongue from horizontal movement, and means on the frame operatively connected with the tongue for raising its rear end.

9. In a beet pulling machine, the combination of a frame, beet pulling elements carried thereby, ground wheels sustaining the frame, a draft tongue mounted on the frame and movable at its rear end both up and down and also horizontally, an extension on the rear end of the tongue, a transverse yokeframe on the machine frame having a socket in position to receive the extension on the tongue when the rear end of the latter is moved upwardly and acting to hold the tongue against horizontal movement, said yoke being of a form to permit the horizontal movement of the rear end of the tongue when the latter disengages from the socket, a hand lever on the frame, and a flexible connection between the hand lever and extension for engaging the latter in the socket.

In testimony whereof, I have a'lfixed my signature in' presence of two witnesses.

CONRAD ESPING.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

